With a long-term goal of identifying novel therapeutic targets for treatment of cardiovascular diseases, Dr. Guo’s research interest is to use genetically-modified mice and combine with molecular, cellular, and biochemical approaches to study transcriptional regulation and signal transduction in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells, organ culture, and animal models, and the implications in the physiopathology of hypertension, diabetes vascular complications, restenosis, and abdominal aortic aneurysm.

The current research projects in Dr. Guo’s laboratory follow:

The role of smooth muscle iPLA2β in transcriptional regulation of regulator of G protein signaling 2 (RGS2) by angiotensin II in cultured VSMC

The role of smooth muscle iPLA2β in diabetes-associated vascular smooth muscle hypercontractility and hypertension

The role of smooth muscle iPLA2β in initiation and early progression of vascular inflammation and neointima formation

The role of smooth muscle mineralocorticoid receptor in deoxycorticosterone acetate- or aldosterone-salt-induced abdominal aortic aneurysms

The role of smooth muscle BMAL1 in regulation of vascular smooth muscle contractile variability and blood pressure circadian rhythm